Well here is the next little taru story. It may seem kind of down but it'll have a happy ending I promise!!! I wrote this while I sit here being unable to trust my comp in game since my video card is going out. I'm unable to do much in game before it crashes and it'll be a few weeks before I get my new card probably. So I'm missing out on all the missions and AF quests I could be helping on XD , but just like this story there is a brighter side , (I may actually finish Xenosaga Ep II lol ). Also I've taken your suggestions and started an account on http://www.opendiary.com under the author name Kitaru where the Little Taru's stories can be found as I write them. Without further ado , The Little Taru : The Test. I hope you enjoy!!! ^.^

The little taru smiled happily as he drew in a deep breath of the fresh sea air in Bibiki Bay. His journies of late had only served to strengthen his faith in Vanadiel. He had met so many wonderful people along the way and had came far with old friends. Today the little taru wanted to return to that lonely beach on Purgonogo Island, not to contemplate fading away again , but to reaffirm his will to go on.

"The Manaclipper bound for Purgonogo Isle has arrived!!!" Shouted a nearby mithran.

"That's my cue!!!" The little taru said happily to himself as he jumped up from the docks and started making his way to the clipper.

Making it to the clipper just in time the little taru waved happily to the mithran at the docks. "Good Journey!!!" He shouted as the clipper pulled away.

Plopping down on the wing of the clipper the little taru contentedly pulled out his fishing rod and hung it over the side hoping that grilled Gugru would be on his menu that night on the beach. The sea was beautifully calm today, the sea gulls flying high overhead and the dolphins playfully swimming beside the clipper.

The mithran tour guide seeming a bit alarmed at the lack of tourists on the clipper came and sat next to the little taru.

"Tis a fine day to be fishing little one! This trip seems to find you quite content!" The mithran said with a smile.

The little taru smiled. "What's not to be content about? The day is perfect and the sea is beautiful! Even the dolphins seem to be smiling for us!!!"

"NOT ALL IS MEANT TO BE TO BE A JOY...." A voice said.

The little taru jumped to his feet startled , that wasn't the mithrans voice. "What's the matter little one?" The mithran asked. "You didn't hear that?" He replied. "I heard nothing little one, there is only us and the fine pilot of this vessel aboard." She stated as she got up and made her way back to the cabin , obviously shook up by the taru's strange behavior.

"IN LIFE ONE MUST LEARN TO ACCEPT SADNESS...

ONE MUST LEARN TO ACCEPT THOSE TIMES WHEN THEY ARE ALONE... AND HELPLESS..." The strange yet beautiful voice boomed.

"What in Altana's name is goin.." The little taru started, but was cut short.

"YOU'VE ACCOMPLISHED MANY THINGS IN THIS LAND LITTLE TARU , BUT YOU ARE NOT PREPARED TO FACE THE DARKER ROADS AHEAD FOR YOU. A SHADOW IS GROWING OVER THE LAND , AN EVIL THE LIKES OF WHICH VANADIEL HAS ONLY SEEN ONCE BEFORE. YOU'VE MADE STRONG ALLIES FOR THIS FIGHT , BUT THE SHADOW WILL TRY TO TEAR THOSE FRIENDS AWAY , WILL TRY TO MAKE ALL OF VANADIEL FEEL HOPELESS AND ALONE. IT WILL TRY TO TAKE VANADIEL'S VERY WILL TO FIGHT AWAY.

WHAT WILL YOU DO LITTLE TARU? IF THE SHADOW TAKES YOUR FRIENDS AWAY? IF THE SHADOW MAKES YOU FEEL HOPELESSLY ALONE? WILL YOU FADE....... OR WILL YOU FIGHT?"

Frantically looking around the little taru stood his ground. "I'll fight.... , but I won't lose my friends. I'll do everything in my power to keep them from falling under the Shadow's sway!!!"

"YOU STILL DO NOT UNDERSTAND. ONLY BY SHOWING YOU THE ODDS YOU'RE AGAINST WILL YOU SEE. THEN YOU CAN MAKE YOUR DECISION TO FADE..... OR FIGHT. SOMETIMES THINGS ARE BEYOND EVEN THE STRONGEST WILLED, THE STRONGEST HEARTED PERSON'S CONTROL...." The voice continued.

"What do you mean???!!! I'll never truly be alone!!!" The little taru shouted angrily.

"YOU WILL KNOW THE MEANING... IT IS SPOKEN AND NOW IT IS DONE. WEATHER THIS TEST WELL LITTLE TARU. THE FATE OF YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS HANGS IN THE BALANCE...." The voice stated sadly.

The skies above the clipper suddenly became pitch black and the wind picked up. The calm sea suddenly sprang to life , rolling and churning in all directions. The little clipper began to toss violently. The little taru braced himself as best he could as the rain began to pour and thunder crashed in the distance.

" Whatever this fate is, I will not accept it!!!" The little taru shouted defiantly as the seas grew more violent. As the ship tossed more violently he struggled to hold on.

A scream cut through the loud storm. The little taru turned his head to see the mithran tourguide barely hanging onto the wing on the other side of the clipper.

"Hang on!!" He shouted as he struggled over to the other side, waves crashing violently into him. The captain had came out to try and help as well but took the full force of a wave and had been swept overboard.

Reaching the opposite side the little taru braced himself and reached for the mithran. "Take my hand!!!" He shouted over the storm. "NO!! You'll be swept overboard!!" The mithran yelled back defiantly.

The mithran begrudgingly reached out and claspted the taru's hand. The little taru then drew his blessed hammer and shouted "Seraph Strike!!!" slamming the hammer into the wing of the clipper with a burst of light, giving himself something to hold onto.

"You're going to make it!!!" The little taru shouted with a smile and began to try to pull the mithran up.

Just as the mithran was almost back on deck a huge wave crashed into both her and the little taru sending them both off of the clipper's wing. Holding onto the hammer for dear life the taru grabbed the mithran's hand again.

The little taru frantically tried to think of how they were going to get back on deck when he felt his mitt slipping off of his hand.

"NOOOOOOO!" The little taru shouted. "I promised you I wouldn't let you die!!!!" He grasped as tightly as he could but his water soaked mitt kept sliding away til finally the mithran fell into the black churning sea. Struggling the little taru got back on deck and held to the hammer fast frantically trying to spot the mithran in the water to no avail.

Tears welled up in the little taru's eyes mixing with the with rain pounding against his face. He had done everything he could but he couldn't save her....

The storm raged for several more hours as the little taru held fast to his blessed hammer anchored into the wing of the clipper. Sometime that night the sea finally grew calm again and the skys cleared to reveal a moonlit night filled with stars

Weakly the little taru made his way to the center of the deck and collapsed onto his back looking up at the night sky , tears still trickling down his face. The clipper had been tossed far from home , there was no captain to navigate the ship, and despite his best efforts an innocent had died. The little taru was lost , alone , and no hope seemed to be in sight....

The little taru sighed. "I've failed , strange voice. I couldn't save them. This is a fate well deserved by this taru." He weakly said as exhaustion pulled him into sleep....

Somewhere far away beyond mortal reach, the voice that had spoken to the little taru sighed.

"This test isn't over little taru, and though I hate to put you through it , if I don't, the Shadow Lord will destroy you and your friends. Only when and if you understand will this test be over..." The voice quietly spoke to itself.

To be continued...

Edited, Sat Mar 26 03:57:42 2005 by Kitaru

____________________________

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I , I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference" ~Robert Frost -Kitaru 63WHM/34SMN Rank 5 Bismarck- "WILL YOU FADE.... OR WILL YOU FIGHT?"

You could sort of call me an rp'er, Nights,but in the area I live in it's a bit hard to find others when the local pastime is getting drunk yelling "yeehaw" and circling the town square 200 times in a pickup truck XD. lol Gotta love small town Tennessee .Well here is the conclusion to The Test! I hope you all enjoy!!! ^.^

The little taru stood in Windurst Walls... but it wasn't Windurst ... at least not as he remembered...

The sky basked everything in an unfriendly grey light... the walkways were all deserted... no children playing .... no Star Onion Brigade chasing Mihgo... the water, where once the little taru enjoyed casting his line... was now dark and dank. The trees stood lifeless and the buildings were all in disrepair.

"How..." The little taru stuttered as he stumbled forward. Slowly his gaze looked towards Heaven's Tower to see a horrible sight. Over half of the great tree was gone ... looking like a splintered and charred stump. Slowly the little taru made his way to Windurst Waters to see things in much the same shape.

Something caught his eye....

In front of the Rarab's Tail were creatures the likes of which he had not seen before.... and.... beastmen....

"NO..." The little taru gasped as he slowly crept around to the rear entrance to the Rarab's Tail and pushed his way in through the rotting doors. The tavern had not fared well either , looking as though it had been abandoned for some time. There , in the corner behind the counter sat a taru child. The child was quivering and obviously injured. The little taru quickly ran behind the counter to help the child.

*CRACK*

A huge fist met with the little taru , sending him flying backwards over the counter and to the ground.

"You will not hurt this child!!!" A familiar voice growled.

The little taru looked up to see a tall shadowy figure standing over him menacingly.

"Your voice..." the little taru stammered as he rubbed his tender jaw, "Aravan?"

The shadowy figure stumbled backwards , shocked.

"Little one? Is that you?"

The little taru smiled , "Most of me anyway.... I think part of my jaw is sitting over on the stage from that hit."

"I thought all the mages were gone.... they were among the first to be hunted down... but you dissappeared before then." Aravan exclaimed to himself.

The little taru got to his feet and began attending to the child's wounds , "Tell me Ara what has happened? How could something so drastic happen in a day?"

"A day?" Aravan asked confused. "This war has raged for years with the Shadow Lord. He has all but won now with only a small group of us left to resist him. I came here looking to find any survivors left in hiding... and found you."

"I haven't been gone for years...." The little taru stuttered.

Aravan continued his tale...

"The Summoners were the first to be hunted down , being considered the greatest threat to the Shadow Lord then the other mages followed. Not many people are left now, and fewer still are willing to fight. "

The little taru stood in quiet shock , unable to say anything when the air suddenly grew colder and a great dark feeling overwhelmed him... Aravan quickly smashed a hole in the floor with his mighty fists and lowered the child underneath it. "Stay here until it is safe little one" He whispered to the child.

"What is going on Ara?" The little taru asked.

"I don't know why.... but HE is here. Probably going to hunt us down personally for his own amusement." Aravan growled.

"W-who is here?" Asked the little taru.

"The Shadow Lord." Answered Aravan coldly. "Stay here and keep the child safe." Aravan spoke as he quickly grabbed the little taru and hurled him underneath the floor with the child.

The little taru frantically tried to climb out of the hole when suddenly he heard the sounds of a fight. Aravan must be fighting the beastmen and those creatures outside , he thought.

A cold laugh pierced the air followed by what sounded like a loud explosion... then silence.

"Find the child" The cold voice commanded. "We can't have another Summoner or Mage on our hands."

The little taru was still in shock.... the world he knew was gone.... he'd just heard the end of Ara... no more friends left , and an enemy he couldn't fight alone...

In an instant something changed within the little taru. He reached down and gave the child a hug. "Little one , I'm going to leave you here but you'll be safe , they'll neither be able to see you or hear you. When it is clear go find help." Quickly the little taru cast a spell of Sneak and Invisible upon the small child, then climbed out of the hole and made his way outside...

There among the beastmen stood a great hulking shadowy creature.... "I've seen this before..." the little taru stammered , remembering the cold shadowy figure that spoke to him when he had gathered the last magicite for the Archduke. The creatures burning eyes slowly turned it's gaze to the little taru and grew wide and angry upon seeing the white and red healer's cap upon his head.

"A mage..." It growled coldly. With a raise of the it's hand the little taru felt himself hurled backwards through the wall of the tavern. "You will die." It laughed.

The little taru struggled to get up amid the rubble but found he was too badly injured. " Heh" laughed the taru as blood trickled from his mouth. "Outta my league again , as usual" He said with a weak smile. A small voice suddenly erupted next to him.

"Don't fight!!! You can't win!!! Lets get out of here now!" The child begged.

The little taru laughed , "Go back to the safe spot little one." he said coughing up blood. "I understand now. I can't always save everyone , and I can't fight this thing alone , but nonetheless I must fight. Even though friends and allies may fade, I am still here.... I have to keep fighting no matter what..... for those friends." He finished weakly , "and, besides this ole white mage still has a trick or two up his sleeve."

The Shadow Lord stood outside , with his minions watching the dark hole the little taru had made in the wall with sick amusement. Suddenly there was a burst of light from the darkness. Up above the Rarab's Tail a small halo of light could be seen.

"BENEDICTION!!!" One of the beastmen growled.

The Shadow Lord grinned , this prey was most stupid and terribly amusing. There was movement in the darkness. The front wall of the Rarab's tail shattered as huge stone columns erupted from within then faded away.

"Stoneskin will do you no good little taru" The Shadow Lord mocked.

As the little taru stepped out of the rubble , he said nothing. Only a small smile upon his face as he slowly made his way towards the Shadow Lord , with his blessed hammer drawn and his Holy shield in hand.

Finally the little taru spoke,

" Maybe it won't, but as long as I go down fighting there will be someone to take my place to face you again and again... until finally someone stops you. It is when the will to fight is lost , that others will lose their's too. It is when the will to continue on without your friends is lost , that other's will cease to continue as well. I've made my decision....." The little taru began.

Somewhere in the back of the little taru's mind he could hear that strange voice again.... "Will you fade.... or will you fight?"

"... And my decision is to fight." The little taru smiled.

Suddenly things began to grow bright.... and brighter still. It became difficult to see anything in the blinding light of the sun as the little taru opened his eyes and quickly got to his feet.

He found himself upon a beach , but not just any beach , it was Purgonogo... There a short ways off in the water he could see the wreckage of the clipper.

"You're awake little one!!!" Came a cheery voice. The little taru turned to see the mithran tourguide and captain running up to him.

"You made it?" The little taru asked happily.

"Would we be here if we hadn't?" Laughed the mithran. "We're expecting another clipper soon to take us back to Bibiki."

"That's great!" Exclaimed the little taru happily as he collapsed back to the sand and drew in a deep breath. That dream.... was it a dream.... he had felt the pain of that blast... but he didn't care... he had made his decision.

Once again the little taru heard the strange voice , but this time it was a whisper....

"You've passed the test little taru... every adventurer must face this test in their own way. Many fail and fade from this world when they lose everything. Those of you who don't fade, have and always will stand their ground , and will keep Vanadiel and her people safe. Now little taru, you can be happy."

The little taru smiled to himself , because now he understood.

-The End

Edited, Sun Mar 27 08:05:41 2005 by Kitaru

____________________________

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I , I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference" ~Robert Frost -Kitaru 63WHM/34SMN Rank 5 Bismarck- "WILL YOU FADE.... OR WILL YOU FIGHT?"

No need to worry about me, but make sure you take the bunny ears off Kit's Moogle...he beat one dead this morning. Not a pretty picture.

I told ya Ara , the little !@#$#@# was trying to hide some of those lettered eggs. It would only keep saying "Kupo" "Please stop!" and "Think of the children!!!" but it never would tell me how it got in my locked house so i had to keep hittin' it. The "Club" works for more than just cars by golly!

lol back on topic now , thankies for all the great responses everyone!!!! I may crank out another story before my new comp gets in , since I can't really play much with this old one crashing everytime I blink XD

____________________________

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I , I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference" ~Robert Frost -Kitaru 63WHM/34SMN Rank 5 Bismarck- "WILL YOU FADE.... OR WILL YOU FIGHT?"